Leaving Curtis, to walk straight into the line of fire at work, was far from my definition of a good time, but, alas, it’s how the day had gone. I’d barely stepped into my cubicle when my desk phone rang with the first of five irate customers complaining about a downed system my department had no connection too. Par for the course on a Monday, but still not fun.

My day brightened as my phone buzzed in my purse.

Still on for lunch?

Glancing at the clock and then my to-do pile, I knew it wasn’t the best idea. I’d probably hear about it for a week, but my fingers answered of their own accord.

Looking forward to it.

I was the employee who skipped lunch to get things done, stayed late so those with families didn’t have to, and never complained to anyone in the office, at least not since Roxanne left. I deserved a full lunch break.

“Madeline, you know better than to use your work time for personal business,” George seethed from behind me. When did he get there?

“Sorry, Mr. Francis.” I shoved the phone in my pocket, ignoring the buzz indicating Parker had replied.” It won’t happen again.”

“You’re right it won’t. You can make up the time at lunch.”

George was never a good guy, but I’d never seen him this unreasonable before. Usually, once I whipped out the Mr. Francis, he was putty in my hand, most likely because he had some gross BDSM fantasy about spanking me or some such shit, but you work with what you’ve got, and if formality made him less of an ass, I was going with it.

“I’llstay late, sir. I put in for an extended lunch.” Because he might be my boss, but he wasn’t going to ruin my lunch, not when I could easily stand up and see ten people with cell phones on their desk, eyeing them every time they got a notification. Not gonna happen.

“Which is why, I was here in the first place. Denied.” I was not going to yell at him. I was not going to yell at him. I was not going to yell at him. “You can’t just willy-nilly decide to take time off. That’s not how it works.”

Except that was exactly how it worked, and he knew it. Half the time people spent too long at lunch and put in the request later. Whatever had crawled up his ass today needed to dislodge itself. Pronto.

“Yes, sir. I will just take my normal time.” A short lunch with a hot guy was better than no lunch. Even if the entire thing was unfair.

“Were you not listening?”

I stood up as he leaned over me doing the power-move crap. I had no time for that.

“You will make up for your time lost this morning by skipping lunch.”

“That is against state regulations, sir.” My voice was calm given the rage that was quickly building. I needed to transfer departments before I lost my ever lovin’ patience.

“And now that missed lunch will be paired with a written warning. Anything else you’d like to add?”

“No, sir.” Unless he meant my fist to his face. Human Resources was getting a visit from me as soon as Angela got back from her maternity leave because this was crossing a line even he couldn’t gaslight away.

“Excellent. And, Madeline? You stink. If you’re going to be around vermin, please do everyone a favor and shower.”

He did not just call me smelly. Except, the wrinkle in his nose told me exactly that.

“I have no idea what you are talking about, sir.”

I leaned over him. It was a bitch move, but, in these heels, I was taller than him, which I knew burned his butt.

“I’m sure you don’t.”

And then the desk phone rang. Whatever the caller had to say was four thousand times better than the conversation at hand.

“I need to get this.” I turned from him, taking my seat and answering said call with the sweetest voice I could muster up. His feet echoing as he stomped down the hallway like a petulant child. I allowed myself to get lost in the call, which was one of many for the morning. Looked like there was a server down somewhere, one which was not even close to my department, but the mis-routed call got George on his way, so grateful I was.

“Madeline, a Mr. Houston is here to see you.” Betsy peeped over my cubicle, startling me from the complaint report I had been just finishing up.

Suck. I completely forgot to cancel. This was not good, on more levels than I cared to analyze.

“I’ll be right there, Betsy.” She wanted more from me. Who could blame her? Parker was hotter than hot, but I had to submit the form and go break the bad news to him without ruining the start of what I hoped would be a good thing.

As I rounded the corner to the reception area, he nearly stole my breath. Jeans and a form-fitting T-shirt never looked as sexy, and paired with that smile? Yum.

“Hi, beautiful.” He met me halfway, giving me a far-too-brief hug. “Ready to go?”

“I can’t.” His face fell, probably matching mine. “I need to work through lunch. I’m sorry for not calling.”

He tensed beside me, and at first, I thought it was at my rejection, but as George took another step forward, the reason became clear. Asshat.

“She didn’t call because that was what got her in trouble in the first place.” His anger, as beyond irrational as it was, filled the room.

“I already apologized, Mr. Francis.” I knew I sounded weak, submitting like that, but sometimes it just wasn’t worth it.

“Back to work. This is not social time.”

“With all due respect, Mr. Frank, was it?” Parker took a half step in front of me. It wasn’t possessive, it was protective and gave me warm feels that were completely out of place given the scene developing before me. The scene that was now being watched by almost everyone in the department.

“George Francis.”

As if Parker didn’t remember. George made a mistake thinking he should get into this battle in front of Parker, from the looks of things.

“George, under state regulations, employees working a full shift are required to be given two paid fifteen-minute breaks per eight-hour shift and one half-hour break that is not required to be paid.” There was no way he knew that for sure, being an out of stater, but the confidence in his voice had even me convinced he knew his legal guidelines. He was, incidentally, right.

“She was on the phone.” His anger, more in control this time. Probably because of the handful of cell phones currently out and probably recording. Yay, coworkers filled with the nosey.

“During her morning fifteen-minute break.” He said it as truth. He had no idea and was incidentally wrong, not because I wouldn’t have waited for my break, but because I hadn’t been given one in over a year.

“We don’t do that here,” Betsy piped in helpfully. She was at the age where she could retire whenever she felt the need, and her shits were officially gone, and she had the luxury of not being directly under George’s authority. Not that I envisioned her as a toe-the-line kind of gal in her youth or even with her own bosses.

“Betsy.” George’s sternness only came across as a confession.

“Sorry, sir.” She so was not. I held in a giggle.

“So, Madeline and I will be off for her lunch now.” Parker stated as he took my hand.

“Thirty. Minutes. Not a second longer.” Because George just couldn’t let things go. It must’ve been miserable to be him.

“Noted.” Parker winked as he spoke, bringing a few gasps from the crowd that wasn’t even hiding their interest in the unfolding events.

“And don’t think I don’t know what you are. Your kind isn’t welcome around here,” George spat as we walked out the door, both of us pretending we didn’t hear because, screw that. We had a half hour of together time.

“Is he always such an asshole?” Parker asked as the elevator door closed behind us.

“George? Yeah, always. Usually a few sirs and a couple of Mr. Francises settle him down, though. He likes to feel important.” Today was an exceptionally asshole day for him, though, and a far-too-big part of me hoped that meant he was coming down with something and wouldn’t be around for a few days.

“Because he has a small cock?” the word cock popping out of his mouth just as the doors opened and shocking a poor old lady.

“That’s what we all assume.”

“So, thirty minutes.” He led me to the door, walking a bit faster than normal, which I totally got. Our time was limited.

“Twenty-six.” I sighed as we exited the building.

“Coffee shop across the street?”

I gave a quick look to see if there were any new fun food trucks that had popped up, but there weren’t, much to my disappointment. Mediocre coffee and stale pastries it was.

“Sounds good.” Ish. Good-ish. It was with him, so that made it good. “What did he mean by your kind?” That had been bugging me since he said it. It was such a weird turn of phrase given that Parker looked like a random hot guy and not some normally marginalized group.

“You caught that?”

I nodded.

“We have twenty-three minutes. Can we come back to that?”

And like a rock in the stomach, it hit me. George was commenting on his sexuality. I didn’t know I could hate the man more, but I did. Jerk.

“Sounds good. Not looking forward to going back.” I confessed as we crossed the street, the light finally in our favor. “He looked pissed, the little weasel.”

“More like a dog.”

“That, too.” Not that I would tell Parker what a truly doglike freak he was, always sniffing around my ass. I might not know Parker well, but if cutting my break had him defending my honor, I didn’t want to think about what being a creeper to me would result in.

“I want a do-over, for the record.” He held the door for me at the blissfully empty coffee shop. In the morning, an entire half hour could easily be spent waiting to order your coffee.

“This date is already so horrible you want a do-over?” I teased as I perused the menu board.

“More like too short.” He came up behind me, his hand on my shoulder as he leaned in to speak in my ear. “Dinner?”

“Have you talked to Curtis today?” I asked. How does one elegantly decline a date because they already have one? Or was it with both of them?

“Not so much. Why?”

“He asked me to dinner already. I assumed with both of you.” Or at least hoped.

“I can work with that. What are you doing?” He eyed me typing away on my phone.

“I’m going to message Curtis and see if we can change plans a bit.” Or completely.

“Change them how?” The glint in his eye had me thinking all the naughty thoughts.

“Maybe pizza and a movie at my place.”

His eyes bugged out. He so was thinking sex.

“No listening ears and such. Just chill and get to know each other,” I clarified although now sex was on my brain, too.

“Don’t people mean something else when they say movie and chill?”

“You are awful.” I leaned back into him.

“You love me,” he bantered before stiffening behind me at his slip.

“Not yet.” But I could feel it in our future, which shocked me more than the erection pressed against my ass. At least I knew I wasn’t the only one being turned on by all of this.

“Yet. I’ll take that as a good sign.” His body relaxed as he reached around me, grabbing a couple of sandwiches that had most likely been made a week ago. “Now, let’s get you one of these remade sandwiches and a coffee before you need to be back. Next time, I’m doing this better.”

“You’re doing all right in my eyes.” Better than.

“Then the bar is low, and I can woo you too easily.”

“You can woo me by being you.” I turned around and gave him a peck on the check.

“Quit looking at me like that before I take you out back and kiss you soundly and consequently have you missing lunch.”

“We can get it to go,” I offered just as it was our turn to pay, stopped in my tracks by a low noise. “Did you just growl?”

“Oh, the things you do to me, Maddie.” I took that as a yes. Men.

I never did finish my sandwich, spending the majority of my remaining break talking, laughing, and kissing Parker before having to say good-bye far too soon. Parker had me every bit as butterfly-filled as Curtis. They were both so different, yet equally as good a fit, so far. Maybe this trouple thing really would work out. A girl could dream.